Posted:September 12, 2006

Playing Around with Avatars

My recent post on Hyperland got me thinking about the use of avatars, and then, lo and behold, I almost immediately saw an ad for one. Actually, I'm not sure that they are effective (the vendor claim) or creepy (my sneaking suspicion).

While I love the idea of Tom in Hyperland as the "obsequious, fully customizable" agent, it feels a little different when one tries to model one's self. Perhaps that is one mistake. Don't link yourself as a talking head, find a more attractive one of the opposite sex! (Or, the avatar as psychotherapy!)

So, I’ve given a go to one; try it (you will need to use the back arrow to return):

Actually, what I'm doing here is perhaps a bit of HTML hacking on what is normally SitePal's email come-on for their service. Do check their service out: you can mold your own avatar within limits and make it speak as you wish. (Final tailoring requires actually leasing the creation!) At any rate, while I spent no more than 5 min configuring my alter ego above, let me know if you think this is a:

Wave of the future

Creepy

Needs improvement

Get a babe!

Get a life!

Oh, well. Perhaps not all of us can be talking heads, and perhaps we don’t need more of them.

Thanks.

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Playing Around with Avatars

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Mike Bergman

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My recent post on Hyperland got me thinking about the use of avatars, and then, lo and behold, I almost immediately saw an ad for one. Actually, I'm not sure that they are effective (the vendor claim) or creepy (my sneaking suspicion). While I love the idea of Tom in Hyperland as the "obsequious, fully […]